COVID-19 and LSI — Administrative and Research Services Information

Updated April 26, 2022 10:53 AM

CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) INFORMATION:

MEMO, JUNE 30TH, 2021:

The Province announced that we will enter BC Restart Step 3 on July 1st, which means that UBC will transition to new safety plans that are campus-wide, and our building specific safety plan will be archived.

We’d like to thank you all for the tremendous effort each of you have put into developing and following lab safety plans and keeping our community safe since the start of the pandemic.

Summary of Safety Plan Changes (effective July 1st).

  1. UBC’s campus will be following the campus-wide safety plans available at: https://srs.ubc.ca/covid-19/covid-19-safety-plans/
  2. Pre-COVID occupancy levels are permitted across campus. As of July 1, there is no need to accommodate physical distancing within campus spaces (meeting rooms, offices, labs, research space, etc.)
  3.  Non-medical masks are strongly recommended for shared spaces
  4. Everyone is expected to check for symptoms every day before going onto campus. This is the most important way to prevent a breakout on campus, as COVID is primarily spread by sick people – avoid coming to campus if you have any symptoms. There is no longer a requirement for employers to confirm that employees have completed a daily self-assessment.
  5. Continue to keep a schedule or tracking of on-site employees (offices, labs, research space, etc.) to support any potential need for contact tracing.
  6. Access agreements with posted occupancy limits can be removed starting July 1. Existing building signage that conflicts with new guidelines will be removed by early next week

Further changes are anticipated in early September, when we can expect Step 4 of the BC Restart plan to take effect.

This may feel like a big adjustment for many, so please be understanding of your colleagues over the next few weeks. For example, consider a zoom option for meetings to be inclusive of those who may have trepidations about being in a room full of people after so long. It is also important to note that some of our younger LSI members are unlikely at this point to have received their second dose of vaccine.

Health links outside UBC

UBC Safety and Risk Services: https://srs.ubc.ca/health-safety

BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC): https://bccdc.ca/

WorkSafeBC: https://worksafebc.com

World Health Organization (WHO): https://www.who.int/